1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of surface based computing and, more particularly, to using object based security for controlling object specific actions on a surface based computing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Surface based computing devices are a type of computing device in which a display is laid flat to simulate a table top. Surface based computing devices employ the use of a multi-touch sensitive display to interact with the user. Service based computers can include a separation of hierarchy objects, such as digitally encoded photographs, from the file directory that contains them, such as the directory in the surface based computing device. This separation creates a heretofore unresolved challenge of disallowing others sitting at a surface based computing device from manipulating objects should the owner not want such objects to be manipulated. For example, a user who is not an object owner could inadvertently (or intentionally) delete an important object from the surface based computing device to the chagrin of the object owner.
A surface based computing device is illustrated in FIG. 1 (Prior Art), which shows display surface 105, computing device 110, display projector 115, and infrared projectors 120. Processing unit 110 can contain one or more central processing units able to perform computing actions for the surface based device 100. The processing unit 110 can include many of the same components found in everyday desktop computers, such a CPU, a motherboard, RAM, a graphics card, a WIFI transceiver, a BLUETOOTH transceiver, and the like.
The display surface 105 can be a horizontal surface that can incorporate multi-touch sensors. The touch-sensitive display can recognize objects by their shapes or by scanning tags (e.g., RFID tags) embedded in objects resting on the surface of display surface 105. The multi-touch display surface 105 can be capable of processing multiple inputs from multiple users.
Infrared projectors 120 can project infrared light onto display surface 105 to be used for multiple touch sensing by processing unit 110. A “machine vision” of the surface based computing device 100 can operate in a near-infrared spectrum, such as by using an 850 nanometer-Wavelength LED light source aimed at the display surface 105. When objects touch the tabletop, the light reflects back and is picked up by multiple infrared cameras with an acceptable net resolution.
The display projector 115 can used rear-projection technologies, such as Digital light Processing (DLP) technologies, to project visible images to the display surface 105. A resolution of the visible screen can be different from the machine vision or invisible screen. For example, the visible screen can have a resolution of 1024×768, while the invisible resolution from the projectors 120 can be 1280×960, which can allow for better recognition at the edges of the display.
Because of the nature of a surface based computing device's display, multiple users can interact with a computing session at once. Users can gather around the surface based computing device's display and interact through its multi-touch interface. In some cases, a user can be interacting with sensitive material in which should be locked from use by other users, yet with cannot be secured due to the previously mentioned separation of a directory structure from a hierarchy of objects.
To elaborate using a sample scenario, Bill and John can be sales representatives meeting some clients in a hotel lobby that has an accessible surface based computing device. Bill and John can sit down and authenticate at the Surface (e.g., device 110) as presenters and owners of shared session software objects. Their customers can thereafter joint them and authenticate themselves as recipients or consumers of Bill and John's shared software objects, which are incorporated within a sales presentation.
Bill can convey images from his digital camera to the surface based computing device, which contain images of his company's factory. Bill can want to show the images upon the Surface, which are taken a reasonable distance of important machinery, but may not want customers to be able to zoom so that machine model numbers are revealed. Additional image details can exist, which should only be viewable at a lower resolution than available and/or that are not to be zoomed to a low level. Bill may want himself and his colleague, John, to be able to view, change permissions on the images as this information may be selectively important during a specific presentation but should not be exposed without due consideration of the risks involved. Further, Bill and John may wish the customers to be able to manipulate the images to some limited extent. Further, it may be desirable to impose restrictions for images on an image-by-image basis, so that some images can be freely manipulated and not others.
Additionally, the information conveyed during the Surface assisted meeting can be intended for Bill, John, and the customers only. They many not want other potential users or bystanders to have any access to the session software objects. Bill and John can desire to effect special information protecting behavior when unauthorized users approach the Surface, such as freezing or hiding software objects, changing content, and/or removing software objects from the Surface so that the objects only reside on the camera. The level of control desired by Bill and John for software objects is not existent in the current art of surface based computing. A solution is needed to control behavior of software objects on a per-object basis when using a surface based computing device, especially in the case when a non-authorized user approaches the Surface.